Relieve Back Pain Naturally: Ten Tips

1. Stretching or yoga- Stretching and yoga can reduce tension in stress carrying muscles. It can also help us create flexibility and strengthen our bodies.

2. Massage-Manual therapy or massage helps increase blood flow and circulation. Massage therapy techniques relax soft tissue and help speed up the healing process in injured areas of the body. A good massage can release feel good serotonion chemicals and endorphins (our bodies natural pain killers.) This is just a few of the many benefits of regular massage and bodywork. Refer to our services page for more information about massage.

3. Exercise- Light exercise can help people with chronic back pain avoid stiffness and weakness. It can also reduce the severity of a back pain flair up.

4. Ice or heat packs- Ice packs can constrict our blood vessels reducing inflammation and swelling significantly. Hot packs dilate our blood vessels and are great for loosening tight muscles. Avoid heat if you have any kind of inflammation. If you are in alot of pain most likely there is some kind of inflammation in your body.

6. Hydration-Our bodies are made up of 67% water. If we are not properly hydrated our bodies don't function properly. Dehydration can cause joints and vertebrae to not have proper shock absorption. Alot more pressure is put on our bones, joints and vertebrae when we don't drink enough water.

7. Anti-inflammatory foods -Eating anti-inflammatory foods can reduce back pain. Some of these foods include tuna, salmon, carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, garlic, cherries, spinach, kale and avocados. Avoid or cut back on foods that cause inflammation like sugar, white bread, red meat and dairy (be careful not to cut out calcium from your diet completely!)

9. Proper sleep-It is important to get proper sleep because our bodies release Human Growth Hormone (HGH) when we are asleep. HGH is responsible for cell recovery and growth. HGH helps rebuild damaged tissues when you are injured. Make sure to get at least eight hours of sleep a night if you have back pain!